24 South Korean vessels stranded for 3½ months set for escape as Hormuz reopens

Hopes are rising that South Korean vessels stranded in the Strait of Hormuz for more than 100 days will soon resume operations, after the United States and Iran signed a ceasefire memorandum of understanding and agreed to reopen the waterway.

According to the government Sunday, 24 South Korean-managed vessels are currently held up in the strait — a count that includes ships flying the South Korean flag as well as those scheduled to be registered under it.

A total of 137 South Korean crew members are aboard those ships: 103 on South Korean-flagged vessels and 34 on foreign-flagged ones.

The ships have been stuck in the strait for roughly three and a half months since Iran imposed its blockade in late February. The government said food, drinking water and fuel supplies remain stable, but crew fatigue is high after the prolonged anchorage.

In fact, last month HMM's very large crude carrier Universal Winner became the first South Korean vessel to clear the strait, and an LNG carrier followed more recently. Those departures reduced the number of South Korean-managed ships in the strait from 26 to 24.

However, the specific arrangements under which the United States and Iran will guarantee safe passage for the vessels have yet to be disclosed. The mines Iran laid in the strait also remain a concern.

Congestion is another challenge: an estimated 2,000 vessels must pass through the narrow waterway, raising the prospect of delays as ships work their way out in sequence.

Iran's internal dynamics add further uncertainty. In April, the Iranian government announced it would lift the blockade, only to reverse course within a day after pushback from the military and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

The South Korean government has maintained real-time communication with the stranded vessels throughout the crisis and plans to continue supporting them to ensure safe passage to their destinations once the strait fully reopens.